Assemblies of electrochemical cells interconnected in series and positioned in suitable containers for providing batteries are well known to the art. Such assemblies, for example, utilize electrochemical cells having chemically active substances which react with each other to generate an electrical potential between positive and negative terminals thereof. One such exemplary cell structure is of the metal/air type which, in a particular embodiment, uses zinc and air as the reacting substances.
A particular example of an effectively operating battery using an assembly of zinc/air cells is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,547,438, issued on Oct. 5, 1985 to W. J. McArthur et al. The structure therein uses a stack of aligned, series connected cells extending in-line along the long dimension of a rectangular parallelopiped housing structure or container. The housing includes a plurality of apertures along each of the side walls thereof for ventilating the interior of the housing, such apertures preferably being covered by a porous, polymeric material for permitting the passage of air into the housing, but preventing the entry of water or other objects. The overall structure uses a relatively limited number of components as compared with structures used prior thereto, which components are securely and efficiently assembled into a standard sized housing which utilizes conventional, externally available positive and negative snap terminals for providing the desired overall electrical potential, e.g. 9.0 volts, for use in a variety of battery operated devices, such as transistor radios, and the like.
Although such battery structures have proved useful when using the type of zinc/air cells that were available at the time of the design thereof, the particular housing and cell assembly thereof is incapable of use with larger size, higher capacity cells without increasing the size of the housing. However, such housings must be of a standard size since they must be able to fit into the standard size spaces which are already provided for them in the conventional battery operated devices in which they are to be used. Accordingly, it is desirable, to provide a battery structure in which such larger, higher capacity cells can be accommodated in such a standard size housing so as to provide a battery which is readily usable in battery operated devices and has a longer operating life, without increasing the manufacturing costs and, hence, the cost to purchasers and users thereof. Thus, such batteries should be designed to provide a more effective milliamp-hour/dollar ratio than previously available zinc/air cell batteries. Such higher capacity cells are larger than those previously available in that, for cylindrical button cell configurations, the heights of the cells are greater than those in the cells depicted in the aforesaid McArthur et al. patent.
It is further desirable that a battery using the higher capacity, series-connected zinc/air cells be fabricated using even fewer components and easier-to-use and less costly assembly techniques than those used with respect to the structures of the aforesaid McArthur et al. patent so as to further reduce the overall component costs, as well as the costs and time for manufacture thereof. Such an improved structure should still retain all the advantages of zinc/air cell structures without introducing any operational, structural or manufacturing disadvantages.